TY - JOUR
T1 - Lost in Space? Unmasking the T Cell Reaction to Simulated Space Stressors
AU - Ferreira da Silva Miranda, Silvana
AU - Vermeesen, Randy
AU - Radstake, Eline
AU - Parisi, Alessio
AU - Ivanova, Anna
AU - Baatout, Sarah
AU - Tabury, Kevin
AU - Baselet, Bjorn
N1 - Score=10
Funding Information:
Silvana Miranda is the recipient of an SCK CEN/UGent PhD grant. This work is supported by the ESA/BELSPO/Prodex IMPULSE-2 contract PEA4000140806. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement n°654002. Irradiations at GANIL were financed through the P1211-H IPAC Project.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 by the authors.
PY - 2023/12
Y1 - 2023/12
N2 - The space environment will expose astronauts to stressors like ionizing radiation, altered gravity fields and elevated cortisol levels, which pose a health risk. Understanding how the interplay between these stressors changes T cells’ response is important to better characterize space-related immune dysfunction. We have exposed stimulated Jurkat cells to simulated space stressors (1 Gy, carbon ions/1 Gy photons, 1 µM hydrocortisone (HC), Mars, moon, and microgravity) in a single or combined manner. Pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-2 was measured in the supernatant of Jurkat cells and at the mRNA level. Results show that alone, HC, Mars gravity and microgravity significantly decrease IL-2 presence in the supernatant. 1 Gy carbon ion irradiation showed a smaller impact on IL-2 levels than photon irradiation. Combining exposure to different simulated space stressors seems to have less immunosuppressive effects. Gene expression was less impacted at the time-point collected. These findings showcase a complex T cell response to different conditions and suggest the importance of elevated cortisol levels in the context of space flight, also highlighting the need to use simulated partial gravity technologies to better understand the immune system’s response to the space environment.
AB - The space environment will expose astronauts to stressors like ionizing radiation, altered gravity fields and elevated cortisol levels, which pose a health risk. Understanding how the interplay between these stressors changes T cells’ response is important to better characterize space-related immune dysfunction. We have exposed stimulated Jurkat cells to simulated space stressors (1 Gy, carbon ions/1 Gy photons, 1 µM hydrocortisone (HC), Mars, moon, and microgravity) in a single or combined manner. Pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-2 was measured in the supernatant of Jurkat cells and at the mRNA level. Results show that alone, HC, Mars gravity and microgravity significantly decrease IL-2 presence in the supernatant. 1 Gy carbon ion irradiation showed a smaller impact on IL-2 levels than photon irradiation. Combining exposure to different simulated space stressors seems to have less immunosuppressive effects. Gene expression was less impacted at the time-point collected. These findings showcase a complex T cell response to different conditions and suggest the importance of elevated cortisol levels in the context of space flight, also highlighting the need to use simulated partial gravity technologies to better understand the immune system’s response to the space environment.
KW - Altered gravity
KW - Space radiobiology
KW - Stress immunity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85179301759&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/ijms242316943
DO - 10.3390/ijms242316943
M3 - Article
C2 - 38069265
AN - SCOPUS:85179301759
SN - 1661-6596
VL - 24
JO - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
JF - International Journal of Molecular Sciences
IS - 23
M1 - 16943
ER -